ATHENS – The Museum of Cycladic Art presents a dynamic microsite at https://takis.cycladic.gr/, which hosts the catalogue of the exhibition Takis. Sculptor of Magnetism, Light and Sound, accessible for free online in Greek and English.

The exhibition, a coproduction of the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Tate Modern, and the MACBA Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona,was scheduled to run in Athens from May 20-October 25, 2020 but was cancelled due to the unprecedented impact of the pandemic.

In the 70 years of his creative journey in Athens, Paris, London, and New York, Takis produced some of the most iconic and radical works of twentieth century art, acting as a catalyst for the avant-garde of post-war Europe.

A special microsite was created to provide access to the catalogue material, which will be available online until December 5. Three thematic essays about the artist’s work and practice, as well as Takis’ conversation with the author and critic Maїten Bouisset, are available in Greek and English to guide readers through the central themes of his oeuvre: magnetism and metal, light and darkness, and sound and silence. The material seeks to showcase Takis’ influence on contemporary art from as early as the 1960s, making his work available not only to experts but the wider audience as well.

Idol (Idole), 1962, Bronze, 36.5 ? 6.3 ? 6.3 cm, Takis Foundation – Research Center for the Art and the Sciences. (Photo: Takis Foundation – Research Center for the Art and the Sciences)

The texts were written by Guy Brett, one of the most important British curators and art writers, who co-curated the exhibition with Michael Wellen, Curator of International Art at London’s Tate Modern, and Melissa Warak, Assistant Professor of Art History at the University of Texas at El Paso. Additionally, a wealth of photographic material gives the public the opportunity to digitally browse the works of the exhibition, as well as historical photographs covering the evolution of the artist’s career — material for which the Museum of Cycladic Art was granted exceptional permission to make freely available in light of the extraordinary current circumstances and despite any restrictions that would normally apply.

The project was implemented with the support of Eurolife FFH, a strategic partner of the Museum of Cycladic Art, as well as the Members of the Contemporary Art Support Committee of the Museum.

The exhibition Takis: Sculptor of Magnetism, Light and Sound is a coproduction of the Museum of Cycladic Art, the Tate Modern, and the MACBA Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona. The exhibition was held in London and Barcelona and would have opened in Athens on May 20 and run through October 25, 2020. The Takis exhibition is the brainchild of Guy Brett, a well-known British art critic and friend of Takis, and Michael Wellen, Curator of International Art at London’s Tate Modern, while the Athens exhibition was curated by Wellen and Aphrodite Gonou, the Contemporary Art Program Advisor of the Museum of Cycladic Art.

The exhibition catalogue is available for free online on the new microsite:

https://takis.cycladic.gr/.